Please Remember Me
by AntWarrior
Summary: John is constantly trying to drag Jack back into the life of Sex, Drugs, and Time Travel, but only Ianto can see how this is really affecting Jack... but how can Ianto fix Jack's cracking personal life, before it all goes really wrong? A bit fluffy at times, but who knows where it may wonder... May see an appearance of Gray and/or Alice, and lots of Time Agency flashbacks me thinks
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1.

The wind was wrapping itself around Ianto's figure. He crossed his arms and clung hard to the material of his coat, desperate to at least stay a little warm. The skies of Cardiff hung grey and low, and an odd few people were hanging around, and Ianto knew it was going to be a fairly quiet and boring day. The team were already suffering. Gwen and Owen sat at their desks, pretending to work, but really flicking rolls of paper at each other. Toshiko looking over some figures she'd already looked over a few times already. And Jack, alone, aloft and aloof in his own office, flicking non-committally through some paperwork. They had needed some of Ianto's magic coffee. But with that quickly devoured, and already being used as a new projectile between Gwen and Owen, Ianto had decided they needed something more.

Hence the drizzly and windy trip across Roald Dahl Plass. The place had always looked grey and slightly like something out of a George Orwell novel, no matter what the weather. It was even worse today. Ianto rubbed his hands together and crossed them underneath his armpits, blew out some air and looked down at his feet.

Right foot. Left foot. Right foot. Left foot.

A new café had just been opened a seemingly little walk away from the hub, and Ianto had been meaning to check it out. In fact Jack had asked him to investigate the café as a possible food source for all those late nights at Torchwood.

Almost 24 hour opening times. Check.

Delivery service. Check.

It was just left for Ianto to test the food out. He couldn't just give out the Hub's address to any old shanty food place. It had to be the best... Or at least as best as it could be for a 24 hour Cardiff café. Ianto gave a sigh as he finally reached the café door. He pushed open the tattered door and heard a little bell announce his arrival. And well... the café was even leakier then the hub. What used to be white tiles were pasted roughly onto the walls. Dirt and grime working its way from the corners. A small patter of rain leaking in above a table, collecting in a dirty bowl of unfinished soup. There was no one in the café and Ianto walked slowly to the counter, pulling off his tight leather gloves.

Ianto didn't hold much high hopes for the standard of food but started to change his mind after he was handed the big bag of chips, followed by another two plastic bags of various pizzas, burgers and fish bits. After paying and a quick nod to the sullen-looking teenager behind the counter, Ianto braved the outside once again, snuggling against the hot food.

By the time Ianto got back to the hub, not much had changed. Jack had now abandoned the paperwork and was lying on the small tatty sofa in the hub, throwing a small ball of elastic bands up into the air and catching it one-handedly. He was spread out with his limbs splaying out over the edges of the sofa. His clear blue eyes staring out into space it seemed to Ianto. He'd obviously put a stop to Gwen and Owen's antics as they were now sat sulking at their desks. Pretending to do some sort-of work.

"Got some food for you," Ianto said with his best looking little smirk. "Enough for everyone," He held up the food bags for them all to see. The team were sluggish in their response and Ianto searched for some enthusiasm "Jack?" Jack was still fiddling with the little ball but caught it finally with a definitive two-handed end when Ianto called on him. Jack stayed staring for a split second as if preparing himself, then stood up off the sofa, brushed down his trouser legs and walked over to Ianto. He crossed his arms and walked with slow but focussed strides.

"Right then," He said, clear and confidently. The others remained in a near comatosed state, and Jack spared a quick glance at Ianto. "Gwen. Owen. Toshiko." Jack spoke, short and sharp, and the others grudgingly replied. With a moan from Gwen, the remaining members of the team slowly unfolded from their office chairs and walked over to Ianto and Jack. Each grabbing a bag of food and giving Ianto a quick "thank you" almost under their breaths. Jack stood ramrod straight with his arms crossed., staring at each of them like an old school master. After they'd collected their food and were on their way back to their desks, Jack spoke "Let's all eat in the meeting room, we can catch up with everything that's been happening," and he strode off up the metal stairs and into the meeting room. Expecting them all to follow him.

And they did. Very slowly and unenthusiastically up the stairs and into the meeting room.

Ianto was left standing alone. The silent food and coffee fairy of Torchwood. This was as exciting as it ever got for Ianto sometimes. I mean the odd alien attack/end of the world threat that the others usually faced never really affected him. During such times Ianto's only job was to make sure there was enough coffee and some spare cotton, blue shirts for Jack. He was always getting them covered in what Jack affectionately called "alien gunk" and the odd splatter of blood. Oh, and dealing with all the corpses that normally arose.

Ianto was broken from this particular thought by the sound of the hub's phone ringing, and almost reluctantly he went to answer it.

"Hello. Speaking?" He said, uncharacteristically grumpy and bluntly.

"Well, well. I don't remember you being this forward last time I saw you, Coffee Boy,"

Ianto closed his eyes in exasperation and put the phone down. John Hart had been ringing the hub nearly every week in some hope to talk to Jack. Ianto guessed he was still trying to convince Jack in joining him to explore all of those "magical far-away galaxies" though he hadn't expected John to be the use-the-phone type of guy. The first few times John had rung, Jack had been concerned, though he tried to hide it. He hadn't spoken to John. Jack refused to. Said he couldn't. And after a few more incidents, Jack had just told Ianto to just keep putting the phone down. John would go away eventually he said.

Ianto wondered a lot about John, especially his relationship with Jack. Ianto tried not to. Every time the thought popped into his head, which was even more often now due to John's incessant ringing, Ianto would try to distract himself. It never worked. The stack of leaflets that Ianto would be trying to straighten out would remain an untidy mess as he gazed outwards, wondering about some Jack/John relationship scenario.

At that point he heard something behind him. A light shuffling of clothing drawing closer and closer to him. Ianto froze with his hand still on the phone set.

"Was that him again?" Jack's voice spoke from behind, slightly softer then he usually spoke.

Ianto turned on the spot. "Yer. I... I put the phone down on him." Ianto replied sullenly, trying to match Jack's tone.

Suddenly Jack burst into one of his beaming smiles. "Good work, Ianto!" he chuckled to Ianto and started to walk away, towards some file of paper that sat on the edge of Gwen's desk.

"Thank you, Sir." Ianto added quietly. Looking down at the phone behind him.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2.

It was getting late now. The day had indeed remained quiet and the others all got the chance to go home early. Ianto still had cleaning up to do though, another late night. The packaging and boxes from the food were still littered across the meeting room, let alone the crumbs! Mugs of half drunken cups of coffee sat abandoned across the entire hub. But at least Jack was still here... somewhere...

Ianto walked past the cluttered desks of his "work colleagues" and up the cold metal steps up to the meeting room. It was a fairly large room and was one of the only rooms in the hub that didn't have such a derelict industrial theme, and was pretty modern in comparison with most places in the hub. The meeting room walls were made of transparent glass but it was still hard to peek in. Jack and Tosh had placed a variety of plants all over the room. To the rest of Torchwood they all looked the same, even when Ianto had to water them all did he notice any significant differences between each plant, but Jack and Tosh reassured them each plant was different and highly useful. Jack could talk for hours about each tiny detail of each individual plant. That was one thing that had surprised the team, and something that Owen had ridiculed Jack over many times since. But Jack always had some sharp-witted come back. Ianto would always find himself giggling in the corner.

He finally pushed the door open and went in. To his surprise Jack was sat around the giant transparent table, behind him the large TV screen that Tosh always used to show off her fancy looking graphs.

"Oh, sorry," Ianto stuttered, embarrassed at interrupting Jack, who was sat flicking through some more paperwork.

"What are you apologising for, you know how I always enjoy your company, Ianto," Jack said cheerfully, smiling up at Ianto.

"Shouldn't you be going home soon, Sir? It's quite late and..."

"Are you trying to get rid of me Ianto Jones?!" Jack chuckled, and started to return to his paperwork.

"No! I... Sir..."

"Relax Ianto!" Jack chuckled again, as he started making notes on his papers. "Hey, you know you're right. We should both go out for a little bit, whadaya think?" Jack pushed his pile of papers towards the middle of the table and sat back in his chair. One leg crossed over the other.

"What..." Ianto cleared his throat "What do you mean?"

"You, me and that nice new café. Or perhaps one of the quiet restaurants along the quay,"

Ianto picked up some of the bigger pieces of rubbish that had been left lying around, and went to turn around before thinking again and turning back to Jack. He lifted up the rubbish in his hands and replied "Definitely not that café." With that Ianto turned to leave and had his hand on the door handle as Jack came up behind him.

"Is that a "yes" then?" Ianto could tell that he was smirking and smiled to himself.

"Careful, that's harassment, Sir," And with that Ianto left the meeting room. Walking towards his little, pretend tourist office to bin the rubbish.

"I'll just pack up. You just stay the precious little Welsh flower that you are!" Jack called as he retreated back into room.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3.

The restaurant that Jack had picked was nice. It was quite large but still cosy, with relatively low ceilings. Small, round tables were spaced out across the room with a small bar on one of the sides. The place was full of a rich, mahogany wood and red velvet drapes. A variety of large windows were spaced across the length of the restaurant, though they let in little light, especially at this time of night.

When Jack and Ianto had entered the restaurant through big double doors, there was one alert waiter greeting them. They were led to a small table where the small candles that were placed on the middle of the tables were nearly nubs. And an almost dead flower sat between them. Jack pulled out one of the wooden chairs for Ianto and waited for him to sit down. Jack sat on the opposite side and took a couple of menus from the waiter.

They were the only ones in the restaurant, apart from one old looking man that was sat in the corner of the room. He was wearing a sandy coloured duffle coat despite the warm temperature of the place. He sat with a large newspaper covering almost his entire figure, and all that lay on his table was a discarded trilby hat, and a small class of what looked like whiskey. He also sat smoking a cigarette.

Ianto looked over at the man, deeply annoyed by his disrespect for the "no smoking in a public place" rule and was about to complain when Jack leaned across the table and whispered "Don't worry, he's a regular, they let him smoke,"

Still, it felt as though smoke was filling the air in great swirls, giving the whole restaurant a vintage, musky feel. That must be why Jack likes this place, Ianto thought.

"Didn't think you were a smoker, Sir?" Ianto said, half in question and half in joke, and for a moment Jack went deeply seriously.

"Don't be silly, Ianto. Even if I'm meant to be... well you know, you shouldn't smoke," he looked up straight at Ianto and raised his eyebrows "You definitely shouldn't smoke, you're not allowed to." And then he looked away again, out one of the windows. "It just... reminds me of some of the good bits of the past. This whole place does," he gestured around him at the whole restaurant, and sighed. "I mean, even the good bits of the past had bad bits. I guess I'm just being nostalgic," And with that Jack sat up in his chair and launched a beaming smile at Ianto, making him blush.

The rest of the meal past pleasantly. The food was gorgeous, and Jack spoke unusually fluidly about some of his stories from the past. They were mostly from the war. Jack used to visit this restaurant all the time. There was dancing apparently. Lots of it. Jack would be the life and soul of the party and could get everyone dancing. They'd be ornate interior decorations and the smell of wine, whisky and cigarettes hung in the air. Big brass bands would play, sometimes from a band, sometimes from a record. But it would fill the restaurant. Dancing, music, smoke and Jack.

"Even if it was just for a few hours, it was amazing." Jack paused and looked as if he was remembering some idyllic memory "Mmmmh, and all the men in uniform..." Jack chortled loudly at the picture in his mind but Ianto sat silently. "What? What's wrong?" Jack asked suddenly turning more serious and concerned.

Ianto flustered as Jack continued to push him to reply.

"Well..."

"It's John, isn't it?" Jack asked, he had a hint of anger and annoyance in his voice, though Ianto could tell he was trying to hide it. "Look, John's just being John. He'll get bored and never bother us or Torchwood again," Jack looked straight into Ianto's eyes. "He's not important anymore." Jack reached out for Ianto's hand across the table, but Ianto turned away.

"This place was in your past," Ianto stood up and grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair, "And look at us, look at you! You can't get enough of it!" Ianto was growing more explosive and cross at Jack. Something that surprised him and Jack both. He proceeded to button up his jacket around him, preparing himself for the bracing winds outside and stormed out the restaurant.

Jack sat back, dazed at what had happened. He looked around him and made eye contact with the old man. In a huff, Jack sat back in his chair and took a swig of his drink.

"Ianto..." he murmured under this breath.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4.

Ianto arrived later then usual at Torchwood the next morning. He wasn't sure how Jack would react. Last night there was a change in their relationship. It seemed to be no longer a bit of flirty office fun... Or was it just Jack. Jack putting on another mask.

Ianto logged on his old and battered computer that sat as a prop in his little tourist office, and took a swig of his coffee. He wiggled himself into his office chair and relaxed for a moment. There was peace in Torchwood. And that's when Gwen bustled through the door, a little bell ringing at her entrance.

"Morning, Ianto!" She chimed, cracking her great big, gappy smile at Ianto. He nodded in reply and started to get up and walk towards his coffee machine in the back."How do you always know what I want, Hon?!" Gwen giggled, and made her own way into the hub.

Toshiko arrived next. Slightly rushed and stressed, but nothing that Ianto's coffee couldn't fix.

Much later Owen trundled in. He needed a lot of Ianto's coffee.

There was still nothing really happening. No significant Rift activity, and the few reports that came in seemed to be the result of a drunken night and too many disaster films. Nothing for Torchwood to do. The team, including Ianto, were gathered around Gwen's desk as she scanned through and reported on the various Police reports, and that's when it happened. The phone rang. It broke the awkward silence that had been hanging over Torchwood the entire morning, but left Jack with another problem. Ianto could tell.

"Listen, would you _please _do something about John," Owen complained, with a sharp, disapproving look from Jack, "I mean, I've had the few clingy girlfriends, but this is just taking the piss. I thought you said that you'd sort it,"

"Oh, leave him off, Owen," Tosh said as she went for her PDA. But the phone was still ringing. Still holding a fist around the team. Ianto started to turn round, ready to go and hang up on John, but Jack put a hand out in front of him.

"Don't." He said. Jack strode over to the phone, and took a short, sharp breath. He pressed the speaker phone button, and motioned for everyone to be quiet. They stood in silence as they waited for John to speak over the phone.

"Hello, Jack. I know it's you. Even without seeing you, I know it's your tall, dark and handsome figure over the phone," There was another silence, as Jack stood, arms crossed. "C'mon!" John chuckled then stopped silently as Jack still didn't reply. "No really. C'mon." The unnerving sternness in John's voice unsettled Ianto, but Jack still didn't move. "I had something to tell you Jack..." John teased. "But, if you're just gonna be like that I'm not gonna tell you. And you know what happens when I get carried away with secrets... Remember that time, who was he? A general? Yer, Amazing cheekbo..."

Jack pressed the phone off, and turned round to check on his team.

"I shouldn't of done that." Jack looked briefly down at the metal floor of the hub and stalked off to his office.

"J...Jack?" Gwen flustered.

"Keep checking for any reports..." And Jack wondered off...

"Well what the hell was that all about?!" Owen spouted as he turned to walk back to his desk. Throwing his hands out in exasperation.

"You know what's Jack's like" Gwen said, "It'll go one of two ways, either he'll eventually _have_ to tell us, or it'll disappear and we'll never hear of it again,"

"Why are you acting so calm all of a sudden?! You're normally the first to go digging into Jack's past!" Owen picked up a nearby pen, and threw it lightly into the side of Gwen's face. He slunk back in his chair, his eyes wide and his mouth in the shape of an "o."

Gwen smirked. "You cheeky..." She started running after Owen, picking up a pile of pens that were sat on her desk. Owen scrambled to move out of his own chair and started bolting it down to the medical bay, but Gwen was not far behind. A small barrage of pens landing across the floor of the hub. Tosh looked on disapprovingly at them. But when she spotted Ianto staring at her, she returned to her own desk, rapidly typing onto her computer. It was obvious how Tosh felt about Owen, or at least Ianto seemed to notice.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5.

Not much had been happening in Torchwood, and Ianto had been busy tending to the various demands of Owen, Gwen and Tosh with little in the way of "thank yous." Jack hadn't been the same, and had remained in his office for the majority of the day. Ianto sighed, and decided he would try and tempt Jack out with some more coffee. He went to pick up one of his coffee trays, and decided against it. He brushed of his suit jacket and unbuttoned it, leaving it hanging loosely off his shoulders. He picked up the mug of coffee. A tatty white piece of porcelain that had been used many times before. Jack's favourite mug.

Ianto picked it up with one hand and weaved himself between the scurrying members of the team, and the abandoned debris of Gwen and Owen's miscellaneous throwing matches. No one seemed to notice Ianto, or the steaming mug of coffee, or the fact that he was headed for Jack's office, but no one normally noticed him anyway.

Ianto walked up to the entrance of Jack's office and paused briefly, but continued anyway. "Thought I'd bring you some coffee" Ianto said as cheerily as he could muster in what he knew was going to be an awkward encounter. Jack was sat at his desk, scribbling away at some cream-looking paper with an ancient fountain pen. He kept writing as Ianto placed the coffee on his desk, a piece of ancient wood that had been made a long time ago. It was a much treasured piece of furniture and papers and files stood in stacks spread across the top of it. Jack looked small buried in around it, and the small walls of the office seemed to close in on the both of them.

With a small "thunk" of the mug on the desk, Jack's eyes were led to the coffee. He stopped and stared at it for a while and seemed to be contemplating something.

"I've given him hope now, Ianto. I picked up the phone, he knew I was there, he knew that I knew about his calls," Jack looked on at the coffee mug almost devoid of any emotion at all.

Ianto had to clear his throat to fill the gap before he spoke, "Um, why, why don't you just keep ignoring him. I could change the phone, change the number so he wouldn't be able to contact the hub..."

"Ianto none of that matters. It's John, he'll find a way..." Jack seemed to drift away, and then suddenly back. He rolled up the sleeves of his shirt and picked up his coffee from across the desk. He took a swig of it and sat back in his chair. In the space of a second, Jack put on a beaming smirk and stared straight at Ianto. He chuckled under his breath and started to speak. "Thanks for the coffee by the way, just what I need," He lifted up the mug as a kind of "cheers" remark to Ianto and went back to take another gulp of his coffee.

"Why did you pick up the phone?"

"Ianto..."

The two were silent for a while. It seemed like they had nothing to say to each other that they hadn't already. Jack shifted uncomfortably in his chair a few times, and Ianto tried to look everywhere but Jack.

And that's when they heard it. The normal hubbub of the hub had changed. The clicking of keypads and the occasional laugh from Owen and Gwen stopped, and a silence hung in the air. Jack looked up at Ianto with concern, then rose and walked out into the main hub area. And there he froze in the doorway. Just for a second, but enough for Ianto to know that something was seriously off-kilter. He ran to the doorway and peered over Jack's shoulders.

John.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6.

"Now, I admit I wont be staying for long. Lots to do you know," John spoke casually as Tosh whimpered in his arms, a futuristic looking gun pressed against her temples. He was still wearing the same clothes as when Ianto had last seen him. Tight fitting boots and trousers, with a shackle of weapons hanging off his hips. The same dirty t-shirt, only this time with clean slits across the stomach, and a dry patch of blood soaked into the material. His elaborate jacket bearing even more marks and scuffs, dirt and rips. He had a light stubble spreading across his face and he looked like he hadn't slept properly in days. The light scratches on his face didn't do him any favours.

"You look terrible. When did you last sleep?" Jack asked. He crossed his arms and stepped slowly towards the combined figure of John and Tosh. Gwen and Owen were stood, guns raised and pointed towards John's head. Never taking his eyes off him.

"And you used to be such a sweet talker," John chuckled. He unwrapped his arm from Tosh and pushed her away with the tip of his gun. "Just wanted to make sure your little children wouldn't shoot me!" John grinned again. A big cheesy, goofy grin.

Jack saw his chance and paced towards John at a sure pace and grabbed at him under the throat. Jack continued pacing forwards, John's boots dragging along the floor. Jack and John stood a few metres in front of a far wall and with one definite movement, Jack slammed John against the wall.

"Get up." Jack said, staring down at John's huddled form in the gutter by the wall. "Now." Jack crossed his arms again and stared down even harder into John's eyes. John stared back with the same stare and felt round the back of his head. He looked down at his bare hand and stared back up at Jack. A smirk appearing on his face.

"Thought you'd be pleased to see me? Don't worry, I'm not gonna run off with Gwen again," He looked over to Gwen and winked "They were good ol' times though," He looked back at Jack "Bit boring compared to others,"

"What are doing here, John?" Jack had calmed down, and almost sounded exasperated now.

John pulled a pouty expression "You interrupted my story,"

"Get out now. I haven't got time for this." Jack was growing more angry again.

"Jack, when I materialised here your team were looking as bored as, well as bored as I would be if I was stuck in Cardiff. I thought if anyone, you could keep a room of 4 people entertained. Don't you remember when we had to go after that French King's heart. Room _full_ of drunk and high French men ready to... experiment. No wonder they called it an "age of enlightenment..."

John sighed happily to himself, but the others stood still, guns poised. Even Ianto had raised his, whatever move John was going to make, Ianto was ready.

"I picked up a little tip, bit... mundane for my liking, thought you'd be interested in it, especially as it was so close to "home" for you, Jack," John finally climbed to his feet and picked a folded piece of paper out the back pocket of his trousers. He held it out for Jack to take, and when he wouldn't, John flicked it from his own fingertips and let it flutter down to Jack's feet. "Fine, have it your way," And with that, a blue light started to surround John and he was gone.

The team were silent. What could they say? What could anyone say? Jack was the first to do anything. He bent down and picked up the small piece of paper.

"We're not going to listen to him Jack, are we?" Toshiko stuttered in dismay. He looked up at her, raising his eyebrows.

"We haven't got anything else to do, have we?" Jack smirked. "There'll be no harm in looking, like John said, could be a bit mundane,"

"I'm sorry, but why are you acting like this is so normal?!" Gwen slammed as she threw her gun onto her desk with a loud crash. "Don't you remember what happened last time?! He's some psychopathic liar, Jack! You _promised _he wouldn't bother us again!"

Jack stared up at Gwen, and unfolded the piece of paper in his hands.

"There, coordinates. Toshiko type these into the computer, see where they come out. Gwen, Owen as soon as Tosh gets them start preparing. Ianto make sure the SUV is ready to go," Jack passed the note to Tosh and the whole team were set in motion. No matter how reluctantly.

Ianto slipped through them and made his way through to the SUV's secret parking lot, picking up a mini hoover and a bottle of air freshener on the way. The further he walked away from the main hub, the more leaky the corridors seemed to get. The wind once again seemed to be nipping throughIanto's thin suit. Jack really ought to improve his interior design. Ianto reached the SUV just as Owen started speaking through his Bluetooth.

"Are you ready yet, Ianto?"

"Just got to the SUV now, Owen,"

"Yer, and how is it?"

Ianto opened one of the back doors of the SUV and was physically repelled by the smell. It was the worst thing he'd ever smelt. The pungent swirls of it seemed to climb up his nostrils, something that Ianto was sure would never come out. He started gagging as he looked back to see what had caused it. There, spread across the back seat was a vaguely humanoid shape. The neck and chest looked like it had been clawed open, with a disgusting and sticky black liquid that was slowly leaking out of every pore. The man – Ianto presumed it was a man – looked like he'd been decomposing like that for a while, and the liquid had slowly been spreading throughout the SUV.

The man's face had been badly disfigured, and Ianto mustered all just to convince himself to get a glimpse of it. The liquid once again poring from his eyes, nose and mouth. Trickling and dripping down his face. The eyes were bloodshot and somehow full of pus, but even stranger and more concerning was the man's rather strange tattoo. A group of numbers were neatly etched across the man's forehead in ink, the skin around it still swollen. Now Ianto wasn't sure, but in his view, the numbers looked a lot like coordinates.

Ianto pressed against his headset, "Guys... you'd better come see this..."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7.

Owen was picking at the corpse with some disgust, and no one had felt any particular inclination to move it from its place in the back of the car. Jack was busy trying to piece together the clues, to Gwen it seemed obvious that this was something to do with John, but Jack wasn't so sure.

"Why send a note if you'd already sent one?" Was Jack's reasoning as he gestured to the body.

"But John's the only one, that for some reason, can get into the hub!" Gwen's annoyance rose as Jack went over to check the coordinates with the man's tattoo. Yep, definitely matched.

"Tosh, bring up the CCTV for when we get back, and have you got result for the coordinates yet?" Jack, ignoring Gwen's protest spoke into his own headset.

"Yes, they come out on a road not far from here, sending you directions now. The CCTV is proving hard to find, I can't find anyone entering the room, the hub, or the SUV since it was last used,"

Jack hurumped then replied "Good work, Tosh, keep me updated," Jack clicked off his headset and turned back round to his team. "Owen, keep working on the body, me and Ianto will visit the street,"

"Hang on, what about me?" asked Gwen slightly offended.

"You're staying here. You're biased." Jack stared down at her, and Gwen quietened.

"Here, you can make us some coffee for when we get back!" Ianto acted far too proud of himself. He hardly ever got to do any field work, so when he did he was always sure to get some coffee from whoever was left behind. Not that it was as nice as Ianto's. Ianto and Jack walked in parallel, each with a huge grin on their face, as they made their way to Gwen's car out in the car park along the quay.

After a while, and when the pair had reached the outside of the hub, Ianto's bit of fun had faded, and he started to become more dubious over Jack's radiant smile. Ianto wasn't _that _funny.

"Jack?.."

"Yer?"

"Are you happy we're investigating something that John sent us?"

Jack's smile dropped suddenly and his eyes changed too.

"Ianto..."

"John meant _something_ to you, it's obvious. And sometimes feelings like that don't just go away..."

"What? Like you and Lisa?"

Ianto stopped. Jack looked back at Ianto and raised his hands in the air. "What can I say, Ianto?" he said in mocking tones.

"Don't. Don't talk about Lisa. You didn't know her. You didn't know what she was really like! You just saw her as some sort of monster!"

"Isn't that how you all see John? C'mon. We have somewhere to be, Ianto," The pair continued walking again, though Ianto kept a little behind his boss. Why would he mention Lisa?! Lisa was in the past, something that Ianto was trying to put behind him. And it had been working if it hadn't been for Jack. Now it looked like Ianto was still stuck on Lisa. Like Ianto wouldn't let go of his past. Was that why Jack was questioning him?

They'd just gotten to Gwen's car, and Jack unlocked the door, and started to fit his tall, brooding frame inside. Ianto moved round the other side and slipped into the car seat easily. Another awkward moment started as Jack had to shuffle back and forward in the chair to try and adjust it.

"Are you sure you don't want me to drive?" Ianto asked, leaning over to touch Jack's shoulder.

"No. I'm fine." Jack reshuffled one final time and the seat dropped back dramatically. "Let's go, have you got the address?"

Ianto felt in his jacket pocket and retrieved his small phone and pulled up the address.

"Webley Road, there's a small alleyway that the coordinates seem to be pointed to, about half way up the road. You know I think I know the road quite well. Estate Agents say it's meant to be peaceful,"

"Lovely." Jack turned the key in the ignition, the small fluffy keyring dangling in Jack's hand. The car chunked into life, and slowly started to stutter along the road.

"Why did you mention Lisa?" Ianto asked finally.

Jack smiled and sat forward in the seat, baring down on the road, "Just a silly little co..."

"Don't you ever compare Lisa to John. They are not the same." Ianto crossed his arms and turned to look out the window.

"Look, Ianto I'm sorry. Can't we just... What happened at the restaurant? Why is John affecting you this much? It's… your changing Ianto, I don't want you to change. You're... you're my Ianto, and you always will be. " Jack's eyes remained firmly on the road.

"Jack... "

"We're here." Jack pulled the car up outside an alleyway and slipped out into the cold street. He started buttoning up his great coat and pulled the collar up around his neck. Something Ianto thought Jack only did to look cool. Ianto was far colder, his suit jacket not the best for protecting against the recent cold weather of the whole Cardiff area.

The street was indeed quiet and peaceful, red brick houses with small green gardens were lined up along the entire street. All quaint and neat. The sun was shining still, despite the biting frost.

"Right. So... this alley," Jack looked around, judging his options, but soon realising that investigating the alleyway was the first logical step. His heavy boots thumping and cracking along the dry pavement. The alleyway was quite wide, with leaves scattered all across it. Tall red brick walls made up the sides, and great trees hung over them. Light still managed to find it's way through, and you could see all the way up the alley.

Ianto and Jack peered up the alley, expecting to see the worst. They were surprised to see a woman come walking in from the other end of the alley. She seemed to be looking behind her, but when she spotted the two men staring at her she stopped in her tracks. Ianto started walking towards, and spoke as calmly as he could to her. The woman looked as if she'd seen a ghost, and could run at any time.

"Don't worry, we're just having a look around the area, making sure there's no crime, making sure everything's still... peaceful. Researchers you see." The woman did not seem convinced, but seemed to relax a bit more as Ianto kept talking. "Have you seen any "suspicious" activity in the area recently?"

"Don't worry Madam. My college can get a bit over-excited at times. Feel free to keep walking, just completely ignore us," Ianto looked back at Jack who was slowly making his way up to Ianto. He tried to whisper something under his breath to Jack, but just as he was doing so a small child, not much older than 7 or 8 came running round the corner.

"Mum, Mum!" the boy shouted, and spotting Jack and Ianto started to run towards Jack with open arms, "Uncle Jack! What are you doing here?" Ianto turned and looked at Jack fully, shocked and angry at what this child was saying.

"Uncle Jack?!" He exclaimed.

"Come on, Ste. We have to get going now," The woman reached out her arm and tried to grab the child's, but he ran round Jack's legs.

Jack looked down at the child and then back at Ianto. He looked hopeless, lost, like he'd broken a promise.

"Ianto, I can explain, just..." Jack giggled, "Ste?!" The child – Ste – was still running around Jack's legs much to the annoyance of his mother, and Jack bent down and caught Ste round his waist and lifted him high in the air, swinging him in circles.

"Uncle Jack! Uncle Jack!" Ste squealed in delight as Jack finally placed him back on the ground, and led him back into the arms of his mother. The two compared looks, the mum wide-eyed and extremely annoyed.

"This is gonna need some explaining... could we?" Jack stood up and straightened his back, and gestured to somewhere up the street.

The woman sighed and replied with her eyes closed in exasperation "Sure, why not? There's not much we can do now, is there? C'mon Ste," The woman took Ste by the hand and walked off towards the other end of the alleyway. She turned to see the others still stood there "You coming?" It had been a long day for her, Ianto guessed.


	8. Chapter 8 - The Ballad of Ianto Jones

Chapter 8.

Imagine it. Just a normal day at work. Well, a normal morning anyway. You started just as you normally do. For the past few years you've been sleeping on your sister's sofa now, being woken every morning by screaming and running children. You try to help out, you really do, but... well... you really don't mix well with children. They don't appreciate quietness and order, nor do they respect your best work suits. And sure, you try to interest them with your stopwatches, but these children just want to run about like wild chickens.

They treat you as worse as Torchwood.

But no, that was mean. At least Torchwood sometimes say thank you. Especially Jack.

After avoiding the ever-growing collection of children around the house, you contort your limbs into a suit, black pinstripes and maroon-red shirt. You smooth your hair, and the wrinkles in the material down as best you can, and you're ready to go. Catching the bus... in the rain... You duck and dive under any protection you can spot. Gwen borrowed your umbrella a while ago, and still hasn't given it back.

The bus is late again, and you stand there looking like a fool. You have obvious black rings under you eyes, and your suit hasn't been ironed for weeks now. You look like the epitome of the failed businessman. You knew that when you had to give your car away though, that used car salesman could smell your "poorness" a mile off. Your life had been hard over the years sometimes. Growing up on _that _estate was never easy, walking around with no shoes on, having to skip tea, breakfast and lunch most days. When you finally found a job in Torchwood One you were overjoyed. Sure, living in London would be difficult _and very _expensive, but that didn't matter, especially with what Torchwood was offering you. The money wasn't important though, you could finally get away from your family. And that was a good thing.

Torchwood wasn't exactly as it said in the job description. It was far shadier, with a lot more secret doors and protocols then you were expecting. And not even in an interesting way. Just in a Governmental way. You didn't really make any friends there, you just sat behind a desk making coffee and Excel spreadsheets...

But finally you met Lisa.

She was so kind to you, so... so beautiful. Her soul was good and honest, and you were completely fallen for her. She was the one that managed to blag you into the training rooms. Grabbing you by the hand and pulling you towards an array of guns spread across a table. Hugging you around the hips and running her fingers up your raised arm, towards the pointed gun in your hand.

Everything had changed though. The Cyberman attack... The petrol down to Cardiff cost you most of what you had left. Torchwood One wasn't gonna pay you anything anymore, and you knew you couldn't go back to a normal job, not after what had happened. You'd only heard the rumours of "the other Torchwoods" but you knew there had to be a chance. One in Wales you'd heard, so it had to be Cardiff. And sure enough, you found Jack. He was completely different to anyone you had ever met before. In your closed experience at Torchwood One, there'd never been a person like him. He opened you up to a whole different lifestyle.

But that didn't pay the bills. You found yourself back home again, sleeping on the sofa.

Jack paid everyone as much as he could, but Torchwood One was down, and you had no idea where any of the money came from. You could've asked for more, you knew you got the least anyway, explained your situation, but you wouldn't be able to stand the look in Jack's eyes. You didn't need to look like a victim.

You trusted Jack to look after you anyway, he looked after everyone in Torchwood. What was it John called all of the team, Jack's children. Except you weren't, none of the team were. Jack had a real child. His own, real, flesh and blood child... and a grandchild.

And that's when your day changed.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9.

Ianto didn't know quite how to act. I mean, Alice was normal. She lived on an ordinary street, in an ordinary house, and had an ordinary life. No guns hanging from the wall in case of alien attack, no secret doorways leading off into an underground hub. She had the same face has Jack, even the dimples when she smiled. She had the same smile too. Her skin was quite tanned, because of an Italian mother Jack explained.

The sit-down was awkward to say the least. Jack spoke in facts only, with Alice lent in the doorway of the living room. Ste, much to his disappointment had been shepherded into his bedroom, away from the important "adult talk."

Jack met "Alice's mum" as she was always referred as, in Torchwood. Jack recruited her to join the team. This hurt Ianto the most. The two married and had Alice, but juggling Alice and Torchwood was hard and she was put into a boarding home. Alice's mum eventually gave up Torchwood.

And that's where the story got a bit hazy. Alice grew up with as much normality as Jack and Alice's mum could muster, and Alice herself got married and had Ste. Alice's mum had died in 2006, and Alice's husband seemed to disappear from the story. Ianto didn't ask. In fact Ianto didn't ask any questions. Jack was telling him all this, all about this part of his past, and Ianto wasn't going to interrupt him.

Jack was saying goodbye to Alice before long, and Jack and Ianto left with awkward thank yous. Ianto noticed that Alice never called Jack "Dad," and the two barely even touched. It was a sad family in the end.

"We should get back to Torchwood," Jack said quietly as the two started walking back to Gwen's car, "Maybe John wanted to lead us to, to Alice,"

"Why? Why would he want that?"

"Because it hurts." Jack looked into Ianto's eyes, his on nearly the point of tears, "See," He smiled briefly, "I don't want my past,"

"You had a child, Jack. You can't just want to... to get rid of that,"

The two entered the car quickly, and Jack stared as stone into Ianto's eyes.

"I didn't mean it like that, Ianto. There have just been some bad times with Alice, and..."

Ianto interrupted, "You want her to call you "Dad," you want to hug her, and be a proper dad. Bad dancing and all,"

Jack chuckled under his breath, and looked away from Ianto. "Her past was wrong, Ianto. I should have been there more in her past, but... but we'll never get that chance..."And with that the pair drove off, back to hub.


	10. Part 2 Chapter 10

Part Two.

Chapter 10.

The dead, weeping body had now been transferred to the medical bay. Even as Ianto walked past on the upper levels of the hub, the smell still made him gag. Owen's clothes had gotten covered with the sticky black liquid, in fact there were drips of it all around the place. His monitors seemed to be flashing, but not as much as Tosh's. As Ianto and Jack had entered, the hub was buzzing. Tosh and Owen were both rapidly working, Gwen running between them, relaying what the other one was doing.

"Jack you're back!" Gwen stopped in her running to and through, and greeted the two men, "Find anything?"

"No." Jack answered sternly, "What's happening here?" Jack quizzed, slowly walking to look over the medical bay, hands behind his back.

Owen looked up, wiping his brow and spreading a great smear of the black across his forehead. "It's an alien, Jack, a bloody alien. _How _could we _not _realise?!"

"Well, it is bleeding black stuff," Ianto said, just as he too took a step forward to look down at the medical bay, stepping in a small blob of it as he did so, "Or am I the only ones that sees that?" He shook the stuff off his shoe.

Owen glared up at Ianto, "Alright, Office Boy, haven't you got some coffee to make or something. Listen, you better leave this to the big boys, Ianto, yer? Yer."

"Owen." Jack snapped. "Let me guess, DNA doesn't match for human, Tosh is running it through the alien database, but there's no match," Jack was suddenly very lax, as Gwen, Owen and Tosh started to nod in agreement, "It's a Honorata. Beautiful creatures, they just turn up really,"

"What, you mean this dead alien just turned up on it's own accord?! It's got nothing to do with anything?!" Gwen sparked.

"But what about the coordinates?" Toshiko asked, looking timidly over her desk.

"See, John could still be all behind this! And how come you only know this now?! Why couldn't you tell it was a... a..." Gwen shouted now, pointing back and down at the body.

"Honorata," Jack finished. "Honorata, it means honour. They're neither good nor bad, like I said, they just turn up. It's a huge crime to kill one... Look at those readings," Jack pointed towards one of Owen's monitors, "and those tools that Owen's obviously used as a makeshift ribcage opener," Jack then pointed towards a medieval-looking pair of large, harsh metal scissors that had been covered in the black liquid. "And putting those two clues together I know it's a Honorata."

"I'm... I'm sorry?" Gwen stuttered.

Jack padded down the steps to the medical bay, and walked up to the body, pushing Owen slightly to the side. Jack poked the broken ribcage with his index finger, and then, as a silence captivated the hub, he plunged his hand into the chest cavity and held his hand around the creature's heart. "The ribcage is extra thick to protect the heart, so you need near industrial tools to break it. The rhythm of the heart is perfect, exactly as it should. To the minute,"

"It's fake?!" Owen realised.

"Exactly!" With his spare hand, Jack pointed with one finger at Owen. "The heart is the key," Jack looked back down at his other hand that remained wedged around the heart, and slowly, he squeezed the heart between his fingers. A red light began to radiate from the creature, and Jack stepped back.

"What have you done, Jack?!" Gwen screamed, her eyes wide open.

"Whoever killed the Honorata will be revealed. It's what you're meant to do. If you find a dead one, squeeze the heart and the Honorata will take the form of it's killer," Jack stood back, picked up a nearby cloth, and started wiping his fingers. One by one.

And finally the mist cleared, continuing to spiral up towards the roof of the hub. In the decaying creature's place a young looking man lied in his place. He lied topless but with baggy leather trousers on hung low around his hips. He had a built-up torso, incredibly so, and was extremely pale. His thick black hair was slicked over his strong forehead. In fact his whole face was very square, with a thin nose that protruded from it, matched with thin, pale lips. His expression serene with closed eyes, as a puddle of the black liquid was collecting on the examination table, staining his back.

Everybody was transfixed by the man, he couldn't have been much older then 20, maybe even younger. But then, one by one, they looked up at Jack. He was stood stock still, breathing heavily and slowly, his arms folded across his chest. His eyes were wide though, and he couldn't take his eyes of the body.

"Jack? What is it?" Gwen questioned.

"Do you recognise him?" Toshiko asked cheerily, hoping that this mess was about to have some order.

Jack looked up his team, then around at Owen. He looked down at the floor for a second, and reluctantly made loose eye contact with Ianto. He walked back to the body and placed a hand on the man's cheek. His eyes searching for some hope.

"It's me,"


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter. 11

There was another meeting in the boardroom. And this time Ianto was included. The group was almost silent as they each took a chair around the glass table, pushing aside the overhanging plants, and dragging the metal chairs heavily across the floor. Jack paced slowly along the length of the room, waiting for the team to sit. His eyes had glazed over, and he hung his hands low behind his back.

The team were seated, and sat in silence, waiting for Jack to speak. Ianto couldn't bare to look at him, he stared down at his fingers, picking at whatever was stuck under his finger nails. More black stuff. It was like an infection this black stuff. Seeping its way into everything. Every follicle. That body twisted the whole situation right from the moment Ianto had found it. Who was he kidding, everything went wrong when John turned up, no matter how bored Torchwood had been before. Jack lent against the table with both his arms outstretched in front of him.

"I know you want to know the answers. The... explanation to this," He motioned over towards the body down in the medical bay. "But there's only so much I can tell..."

"Jack stop bullshitting." Owen leaned forward on the table, crossing his arms and matching Jack's stare. "We can't be running around after you and your past all the time! Tell us what you know is going on! Or _we_ will abandon you Jack, abandon thi..!"

"Owe..."

"No, Jack. You need to listen to us! And you can't do that, you're too busy swanning around with John!"

"OWEN!" Jack screamed at Owen. Jack was stood straight, arms crossed, glaring back. He barely moved when the words snapped off his lips, his eyes just seemed to widen and light up.

And then there was a silence.

During the silence, Jack turned his attention to Tosh, and raised his eyebrows. In this expression, Tosh took to her PDA, tapping away at the screen. The TV screen lit up behind Jack, and a clinical picture of the alien's body in Jack's form filled it.

"It's measuring human patterns now. You wouldn't know it was alien."

"Thank you, Tosh," Jack smiled pleasantly, then turned to look at the picture on the screen. He stared at it for a moment and seemed to be contemplating something. He turned back round to face his team, staring at them individually. Seeing their faces drop as his gaze fell upon each one of them in turn. "A long time ago, when me and... me and John were part of the Time Agency. We were after a diamond. A very important one. A new type of weapon. Very substantial. They, the Honorata, they just turned up..." Jack looked up at Ianto, hoping for something, "They got in the way..." Jack turned back around to face the screen. "I don't know why would turn up now, whether it has something to do with John or not," He faced Owen, "But we're gonna find out."

"Awwwh, isn't it just adorable!" The team turned in their chairs, but already knew what they find, pursing his lips in the doorway. It was strange Ianto thought, he always turned up, completely silently and at exactly at the right time. Maybe he was watching, maybe the hub was bugged. It was iall just a game to him, watching Torchwood scurry around, trying to piece together his little clues. "Anything on those coordinates?"

"You should know," Owen replied, snarking in his little corner.

John turned his head to the side, "I don't like that one. Why do you put up with that? Listen, I've got a man who wants that thing sorted, why haven't you got anywhere," John started walking towards Jack.

"Stop." Jack took his gun from his holster and held it up to meet John's chest. "We're not doing it anymore until you give us answers,"

John lifted his hands in the air in surrender, took a few steps back. Pursing his lips heavily, and his heeled boots clicking against the glass floor. Cutting sharply through the silence.

"Jack..." He smirked, "What happened to you? Before, if you had said something like that, you'd go about it in a _very_ different way..." He giggled to himself. He turned to look at Ianto, "But you wouldn't know that, would you?" He chuckled again, and Ianto shrunk in his chair.

But that was it for Gwen. She rose from her seat, knocking it backwards. She ran to between Jack and John, and started thumping wildly at his chest, pushing John back and out of the room.

"Woah!" John was in stitches.

Jack came running after her, with the others not far behind.

"When will you understand, John?!"

"GWEN! This isn't your fight." Jack reached out and put a strong hand on Gwen's shoulder, pushing her slightly towards himself. And with that, John disappeared into his blue lights. Jack wrapped his hands around Gwen, and looked into her eyes. "Leave it..." leaning his head on top of hers.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12.

The inner hub seemed leakier now. It dripped, dripped, dripped onto the floors. Those cold, stone floors. A black slime was crawling its way up the sides, a green tinge reflecting onto every surface. Ianto's pale skin was even bathed in the pungent glow, his white collar poking from above his suit, matching his green skin. He gazed up, hoping for some light to be poking through, but instead he noticed a crumbling archway. A faded Torchwood symbol was stencilled in the corner of it. It was unremarkable. The whole hub was after a while. Without people, without anyone around, the hub could drive you mad, Ianto was sure. It seemed like a grey abyss, always over-hanging, it needed human life. Ianto wondered how Jack managed. He'd seen Jack disappear into the corridors, not returning for hours sometimes. He'd wondered what Jack was doing, what he was thinking, but then Ianto would be distracted by the crumbling and sticky mess his colleagues had made, and left for him to clear up.

A murky puddle had started collecting on the floor, and as Ianto was lost in his thoughts, he splashed into it, the dark water spraying around his shining shoes. He stopped, dropping his shoulders in exhaustion and sighing.

"Awww, Coffee Boy. What's happened?"

"John."

Ianto paused, unsure what to do, but then spun round on his heels. John was stood there, his swords perched on each shoulder, his legs crossed as he stood there with puckered lips.

"I know you want to know about Jack's past," John stared straight into Ianto's eyes and then whispered "And why he wants it back..." Ianto's eyes flared with anger and his whole body tensed up. "C'mon... I know you want to..." With one swift movement, John swung his swords into their holsters. He wiped his hands over his face, and breathed in heavily and sharply. He looked up at Ianto, he lifted an eyebrow and suddenly jumped into action. He walked with such intensity towards Ianto, Ianto jumped in his own skin, wishing he wasn't stuck in the labyrinth of the Torchwood corridors. "Take my hand." John outstretched both his hands, ready for Ianto to take, and when he didn't, John added "C'mon!" and grabbed down at Ianto's side. Squeezing his hands.

"Get off me. Get off me!" Ianto squirmed, but John continued to shush him like a child having a temper tantrum.

"Shhh, relax now, Office Boy," John manoeuvred so that Ianto's chin was lifted, his nails digging into Ianto's sweating hands. He moved his own head, and started to snug against Ianto's neck, kissing and biting into the skin. With another swift movement, he grabbed the scruff of Ianto's neck, squeezing it so tightly... breaking the skin.

"Stop, stop. Get off me!" Ianto continued to wiggle and squirm, but he couldn't escape John's grip. He started feeling weak, like there was a poison spreading through him, and knowing John, there probably was. "No," Ianto felt like bursting into tears, in fact he felt the small tear trickling down his face. He realised this was happening, and John wasn't going to let go.

"Oh, Office Boy..." There sounded like there was actual sympathy in his voice, and John added a trail of kisses down Ianto's neck. "I thought you would like this. Jack liked it." Ianto's lips furled in anger, and a surge of something went through him. He pushed heavily against John's chest, knocking John clear on the floor, and Ianto against the wall behind him. John chuckled as he rolled about on the floor, "You didn't like that did ya?!" He chuckled again. That was it. In Ianto's eyes, John was the most detestable thing Ianto had ever come across. More disgusting, perverse and monstrous than any of the aliens that had ended up in Torchwood.

"You're a monster." Ianto spat, still stooped against the wall. John picked himself off the floor and brushed his hands against his tattered shirt, and battered his trousers. He chuckled again, his face twisting into a half-smile.

"But so is Jack... You here, at Torchwood, you all idolise Jack. He's your hero, he's your... knight in shining armour. But you don't know Jack. You don't know what he was like before I got to him!" He took a step back as he seemed to be reminiscing. "You want to know! You want to understand! Let me take you, let me show you," he stretched out his hands again. "I'll take you back to mine and Jack's past. What we shared. What you want to have." Ianto remained where he was, his hands pressing hard against the stone and concrete.

"You're a psychopath, why would I follow you?"

"Because you need to know."

Ianto hesitated. He didn't know why, he wasn't thinking properly. He couldn't think at all. John had filled his head with so much. Imagine Jack's past. Would he be able to handle it? But then Ianto remembered. He'd told Jack so much. So much about his past... his dad... Lisa. Jack had listened so carefully. Taking an arm around Ianto, and pulling him towards his chair. He'd placed Ianto in his lap, and had started stroking against Ianto's arm. Kissing Ianto's ear. Snuggling against his hair. Ianto had cracked and fallen as soon as Jack had started to ask him. Thinking about it, Jack hadn't even asked Ianto about his past. He just asked how Ianto was, that was all. Ianto had just collapsed, one thing had lead to another and he told Jack everything. Jack knew everything about Ianto. And yet, Ianto knew nothing about him. The man that had become so much in Ianto's life was nothing more than a stranger.

In silence, Ianto took a slow step away from the wall, and edged himself towards John. He placed his hands hovering just above John's. They both met each other's eyes. A silent agreement between them. John adjusted something on this wristwatch and blue lights started to appear around him. He grabbed a quick and light hold around Ianto's wrist, and the blue lights seemed to start enveloping him as well. The hub around them turned to a blue, moving tunnel, en composing them both. Taking them somewhere else.

Leaving a leaking and empty corridor behind them...


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13.

Jack looked so much younger here. His hair seemed blacker and brighter, styled and cut neatly to the side. A stronger and defined jaw line started a striking silhouette, sweeping down a body at the peak of physical fitness. Most crushingly for Ianto, Jack's great grey coat no longer sat proudly off his shoulders, instead a stout jacket abruptly finished at just above Jack's waist. It wasn't dissimilar to John's, except it was black in colour, with the same silver bars running across the chest. It was in immaculate order and two medals hung neatly over his breast. A red and a blue one. Underneath was a simple black v-neck top, and a little black neckerchief was tied around his neck, hanging loosely down his front. A pair of loose, black leather trousers hung around his hips, hanging off them were a variety of holsters filled with futuristic guns and weapons. But one thing remained the same, a thing that Ianto knew – or at least hoped – would never change. Jack's eyes. Those bright, sparkling, blue eyes. They shone. They had a new youthful vigour that looked as though it would never run out, though Ianto knew better. Jack sometimes had the same look, but it would only last for a second.

Jack had been stood against a wall for some minutes now, Ianto watching his every slight movement. None. Jack had stood perfectly still, staring off down a corridor. His arms were crossed behind his back, and he had one leg folded against the wall.

The place, the place where Ianto had magically appeared was completely still. There was no sound, and the whole area seemed to be made out of grey walls of concrete. Long fluorescent lights were hung down from the high ceiling on thin, lethal looking wires. The place was a large room, completely empty apart from Jack's figure. Corridors were led off in different directions, long but looked as if they all led to similar rooms.

Suddenly footsteps started pacing down one of the corridors. Echoing in all directions, slowly getting louder and louder. Jack remained still. Unmoved. And eventually the figure reached the end of one of the far corridors, Ianto couldn't see who it was due to the angle, but a familiar voice started echoing out.

"It's only me, Sweetie." A pouting, younger John entered from the corridor and walked nonchalantly towards Jack. The younger John was dressed the same as Jack, except his jacket was torn and messy. Everything was badly fitted and dirty. His face was youthful and as yet bore no marks from what Ianto knew was an excessive lifestyle. His hair was pale blond, and a small cut of hair hung over his forehead. Ianto looked back around at the _"present"_ John and thought back to Jack's comment about John's new hair loss. Ianto nodded to himself and turned back around to face Jack's past.

Jack started to walk more formally to meet John.

"I was waiting. You were late. Come on." Jack started walking away from John, in the direction of Ianto and _"present"_ John.

"_Present"_ John grabbed onto Ianto's shoulder and whispered into his ear, "He can't see us, nobody can. We're invisible." Ianto looked back around at Jack, and he stroked down his suit. It was like a natural response for Ianto now. Jack kept pacing closer.

"Jack!" John shouted after Jack. "Oh Captain, my Captain!" John chuckled to himself, and slung his hands in his pocket.

Jack stopped in his tracks, just in front of Ianto, and turned on his heels.

"John." He hissed through gritted teeth. "You don't get to do this now. Not here, not anywhere. Don't you understand, _soldier_?!" He sighed heavily, and wavered his hands around, eventually throwing them in the air, "What did you tell them?! What did you say?" He breathed through his teeth, and started pacing furiously towards John, pushing his shoulders. "What happened in that time loop, stays there."

"Relaaax, Jack, I'm not stupid, I'm not gonna tell them," John paused, "Are you worried?" He placed his hand on Jack's arm and put on a pouty, yet concerned expression.

"Get away from me, you freak! I'm not like you!" Jack proceeded to stalk back again.

"Scared then?! You're scared!" John called after him. "Jack," he chuckled again "Don't worry! You have me to look after you!" There was an air of sadness in his voice, and it hung over the room. "Few minutes, the place." John smiled and walked off in another direction. Jack stopped as he heard John walking away, thinking through his options. After a short pause he continued walking, faster this time, and he went straight through Ianto. A cold rush ran through Ianto's body as he half felt Jack's breath.

When Jack had left the room, there was a silence between John and Ianto.

Ianto coughed and started to speak, "Jack... Jack didn't seem like he loved you..." He knew that would hurt.

"We spent 5 years together. In the time loop. Jack went into that asexual! Or at least he wanted to be. "

"And what?! He emerged your lover?" Ianto turned away from John, and placed his hands in his trouser pockets. He shouldn't of come here, not with John. He was being some type of jealous lover. A total bitch. A bastard. He should've trusted Jack. Why hadn't he? Maybe it was John's influence? Yer, John's influence, he thought.

"If you're gonna be like this, Coffee boy, I'm gonna take you back to Torchwood kicking and screaming. C'mon, time to change location," John flipped over the cover of his watch and started tapping against the buttons. "C'mon, Coffee boy." Even though Ianto was now far away from John, the same blue light started to engulf them both, and slowly the room disappeared again.

The pair emerged in a completely different place. It was like a tunnel, still made out of the same grey concrete. It was very wide but just tall enough for a person to walk under comfortably. It didn't go on for long, and Ianto could see that the tunnel opened into a plain concrete room either side. What looked like two CCTV cameras were positioned in each room, but it didn't look like they reached into the tunnel. A blind spot, Ianto thought.

A small whistling noise could be heard from a distance, but it gradually grew louder as the younger John started to make his appearance. He stopped just as he entered one of the rooms, and Ianto could tell he was waiting for the camera to turn away from himself. When it had done, and the camera had rotated temporarily against the wall, John walked across to the tunnel and slumped against the curved wall. He started picking at the dirt under his fingernails, and when that didn't occupy him, he started fidgeting around in the inside pockets of his jacket.

"I took all your drugs out of your pockets earlier." Jack appeared behind Ianto. His approach entirely silent.

"What?" John scraped his back against the wall and picked himself up off the floor. "I barely had time to get any before we were called in for that meeting, when did you take them?" John spoke as if it was a normal occurrence. Jack remained silent, and still slightly in the shadows of the tunnel. "Fine. If you're not gonna talk." John fished around in his trouser pocket, and revealed a small silver flask. He took a swift swig of it, and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. He slumped back down against the wall and sighed. "Look, I know it's a confusing time for you an' al, but... hmm, well it's been an interesting time." John gazed off into a distance place, "I mean, _5 years _in that place, just the two of us..." John smiled, "and suddenly we were whisked off into separate rooms for interviews and debriefings and all that official nonsense. And to you it seems like it's all over, it's not the same anymore. But it is Jack, it can be!" John jumped to his feet, and walked slowly over to Jack. John started to spread his arms across Jack's chest. Wrapping them around his shoulders and neck He breathed in deeply, and Jack, on the end of John's own long-drawn out breath, inhaled sharply. "It doesn't need to end,"

The pair jumped into a kiss, and John's fingers spread all over Jack's torso. Jack's own remaining by his side. Jack broke it apart, and looked away from John's eyes. He curled his lips in, and looked down at the floor. John caught him lightly under the chin and their lips met again. This time Jack started to move his hands awkwardly over John's arms and back.

"He he, now you're getting it!" He laughed brokenly against Jack's lips. He pushed Jack into the nearby wall, and that's when Ianto looked away. He didn't want to look anymore.

"Let's skip this bit, shall we?" _"Present" _John reached over to Ianto and the familiar blue lights surrounded them again.


End file.
